Syracuse, NY -- An Onondaga County prosecutor wants state law to allow stiffer prison sentences for someone who drives under the influence and causes a death.

"I would love to see the law changed for vehicular manslaughter for drunk drivers who kill people," said Chief Assistant District Attorney Chris Bednarski. "Hopefully, someday the penalties will be increased."

Bednarski handles the most serious offenders as head of the DA's DWI bureau. And too often, he's trying to explain to a victim's family why their loved one's killer is only going to spend a few years behind bars.

Bednarski explained that the maximum sentence allowed under law was 2 1/3 to 7 years for a first-time offender. That bothered him.

"I think it's very likely that he'll be out in two years," the prosecutor said. "My office would not be happy with that, and I'm going to ask that he serve as much as his term behind bars as possible. I know the victim's family will want him to spend as much time behind bars as possible."

Hallihan's mother was so distraught she had a relative read her statement in court today before Stern's sentencing. "I know Patrick would want me to forgive the defendant," her statement read. "I'm not ready, the loss is still to great, the pain too raw."

Those emotions aren't new to Bednarski, and he makes a point to say he understands.

The family of Ryan Dearnaley struggled with a similar sentence for the drugged driver who killed their son last year along the shoulder of Interstate 690. Daniel Wall had cocaine, heroin and marijuana in his system at the time.

Wall was sentenced to 3 1/2 to 7 years in prison for Dearnaley's death, a sentence the victim's mother said shocked her due to its leniency.

"I think it's a fair disposition in this case, given the law," Bednarski said of Wall's case at the time. "It's the maximum sentence he could have received on this charge. To the victim's family, 3 1/2 to 7 is never going to be enough."

Wall got a slightly longer prison sentence than Stern because he had a prior 2012 burglary conviction. Stern had no prior criminal history.

Another man accused of leaving the scene of a fatal crash that killed bicyclist Michael Mahoney is facing a similar prison sentence, if convicted. Authorities have not been able to determine if Chiragkumar Patel was under the influence in the Electronics Parkway crash.

Glenwood Carr, who killed his passenger Steven Sears in a drunken crash before going on the lam for three days, got 6 to 12 years in prison. He was charged with harsher crimes due to his prior record, which included 25 arrests in 25 years.

And Muhammad Baqir, accused of killing a Liverpool mother and seriously injuring her husband and three children while driving on drugs, is facing up to 25 years in prison. That's because prosecutors were able to charge him with aggravated vehicular manslaughter due to the number of injuries.
Alicia Alampi is also facing two felonies punishable by up to seven years in prison each after her arrest in the hit-and-run death of Robert BeVard on Park Street near Destiny USA. It's not clear if those sentences could be added up if she is convicted. Her case is headed toward trial.

The dramatically different prison sentences are based on a number of factors, including the driver's prior history, the level of intoxication and whether the driver left the scene.

But a drunken driver with no criminal record who kills someone else, as Stern did, faces 2 1/3 to 7 years in prison for vehicular manslaughter.

Bednarski said he's not alone in wanting stiffer penalties: the state's district attorney association wants prison time to increase, too.

"They have been increased over the years," Bednarski said. "I think it's time they increase some more."